Audi A3 TDI diesel wagon

Maybe, but I was driving it pretty spirited, and if you have it in auto mode it downshifts like the trans is going to explode. Are there any tuners that have created TCU chips?

Maybe I'm just used to my A6's old mans trans. ha

 

Drove the r32 around tonight. Used the paddle shift tonight, much better downshifting. What a fun car! It's an interesting day when you realize a new vw is nicer than your older Audi!

 

I had an '06 GTI with the DSG transmission and loved it! It was like having a quick shifter, plus in sport mode it would blip on the downshifts for you! Probably the most fun car I've owned but it just didn't fit my needs very well so it had to go

 

Was poking around a little bit more. Is an A3 TDI basically an Audi version of a Jetta sportwagon TDI? They sure look similar, except that the A3 is nearly 6k more expensive when similarly equipped.

 

Short answer is yeah, sorta. The interior on the A3 is a giant leap up but the jetta wagon diesel is a great alternative that I'd dig owning.

 

Did some digging on towing voiding the warranty, too. Seems in the manual it states that the 6 speed TDI Jetta is rated at 3000 pounds and 200 lbs tounge weight. Says so right in the manual, and there is a whole section on how to tow properly, etc. However, these ratings are from the Euro market manuals where people are installing euro hitches like Westphalia (VW oem hitch, I heard). They are class II hitches. For the US market, it's limited to class I and 1,000 pounds.

Current thought on the TDI forums is that the car is plenty capable of towing 3k with a class II hitch, but it's not in the US market manuals on account of people like Dits (lawyers).

One guy said his VW dealer refused to install a hitch on his, even.

So I guess the towing / voiding the warranty issue is clear as mud.

 

I actually like the look of the GTI better.. :up:

 

Got bucks??? I don't so it's a craptastic Ford Focus for me. Actually though, I average 34 mpg (when keep my foot out of it) and 30 mpg otherwise. It does actually handle well and though not a highway cruiser, it does a fair impression of a fun car on the tight back-roads we have around here. It's cheap but the AC and radio works....now if I could just get more than 20k out a set of tires....

When I hit the Lotto...maybe an Audi then?

 

I just bought a Golf TDI with the DSG a few weeks ago. I tried out the JSW which is mechanically identical to the A3 TDI. I didnt like the way it felt on the road. The Golf has a much sportier feel. It rides like the GTI, it just doesn't accelerate as quick. As for the DSG, it's very different from the one we had in an 05 GTI. It's tighter, quicker and just works better in general. In Sport mode, it works as well as a manual on the back roads.